Eur. Phys. J. A (2008) 37: 193-200
https://doi.org/10.1140/epja/i2008-10617-3

Regular Article - Theoretical Physics

A model study of discrete scale invariance and long-range interactions

Helmholtz-Institut für Strahlen- und Kernphysik (Theorie), Universität Bonn, Nuβallee 14-16, 53115, Bonn, Germany

^a hammer@itkp.uni-bonn.de

Received: 2 May 2008
Revised: 25 June 2008
Published online: 18 July 2008

Abstract

We investigate the modification of discrete scale invariance in the bound-state spectrum by long-range interactions. This problem is relevant for effective field theory descriptions of nuclear cluster states and manifestations of the Efimov effect in nuclei. As a model system, we choose a one-dimensional inverse square potential supplemented with a long-range Coulomb interaction. We study the renormalization and bound-state spectrum of the system as a function of the Coulomb interaction strength. Our results indicate that the counterterm required to renormalize the inverse square potential alone is sufficient to renormalize the full problem. However, the breaking of the discrete scale invariance through the Coulomb interaction leads to a modified bound-state spectrum. The shallow bound states are strongly influenced by the Coulomb interaction while the deep bound states are dominated by the inverse square potential.